Microbiocidal quaternary ammonium compounds containing synergistic blends of alkyl groups



United States Patent 3,525,793 MICROBIOCIDAL QUATERNARY AMMONIUM COMPOUNDS CONTAINING SYNERGISTIC BLENDS OF ALKYL GROUPS Alfonso N. Petrocci, Glen Rock, Kenneth W. Prodo, Westfield, and Edward G. Shay, Belle Mead, N.J., and Reginald L. Wakeman, Philadelphia, Pa., assignors to Millmaster Onyx Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York No Drawing. Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 688,355, Dec. 6, 1967. This application June 30, 1969, Ser. No. 837,905 The portion of the term of the patent subsequent to Oct. 14, 1986, has been disclaimed Int. Cl. A01n 9/20 US. Cl. 424-329 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A microbiocidal quaternary ammonium compound consisting essentially of a blend of two alkyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halides wherein the alkyl component in one halide has 12 carbon atoms and the alkyl component of the other has 14 carbon atoms, the proportion of one to the other being between 90/10 and 10/90 by weight. It has been discovered that when this specific blend is used in these specific proportions, the compounds have a synergistic effect on each other, and the product is far more microbiocidally active, especially in hard water, than when the alkyl component consists of either of these compounds individually or in any other combination.

This is a continuation-in-part of co'pending application Ser. No. 688,355, filed Dec. 6, 1967.

This invention relates to microbiocidal quaternary ammonium products and it particularly relates to products of this type having a high degree of microbiocidal activity in hard water.

In the parent application Ser. No. 688,355, now US. Pat. No. 3,472,939, it was established that when a blend of two alkyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halides, particularly the chlorides and bromides, were prepared, if the alkyl group of one of the compounds was C and the alkyl group of the other compound was C an unexpected synergism occurred which resulted in an un expectedly high degree of microbioeidal activity, but only when the C compound was used in a specific range of proportions by weight relative to the C compound. This range of proportions was from 85/15 to 55/45 parts by weight of the C compound relative to the C compound.

In accordance with the present invention, it has now been discovered that such synergism is obtained over a broader range of proportions, namely within the range of 90/10 to 10/90 parts by weight of the C compound relative to the C compound. It has also been discovered that this synergism is not significantly affected by trace amounts (up to about 6.0% by weight) of other substances which might be present as impurities.

When the aforementioned proportions of C and C compounds are used, there is a completely unexpected synergism. However, if any significant amounts of any other alkyl group in the said alkyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium compounds are present in these ethylbenzyl 3,525,193 Patented Aug. 25, 1970 ice compounds, this synergism is either partially or totally destroyed.

The term hard water is generally used to describe Water having at least about ppm. of calcium carbonates or equivalent salts.

The following examples illustrate the invention, without any intent, however, to limit the invention except as claimed:

EXAMPLE 1 A quaternary was prepared in the presence of water, by the reaction of n-dodecyl dimethyl amine and ethylbenzyl chloride in the mol ratio of 1.00 to 0.98, by heating at ambient pressure at -100 C. for from 1 to 2 hours, until the reaction was complete. Water Was then added to bring the concentration of the dodecyl dimethyl ethyl benzyl ammonium chloride so formed to 50% by weight. The product was found to contain about 1% by weight of unquaternized amine, of which about half was present as the hydrochloride and half as the free amine.

In the same manner, the corresponding n-tetradecyl-, n-hexadecyland n-octadecyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium chlorides were prepared from the corresponding alkyl dimethyl amines and ethylbenzyl chloride, and finished at 50% concentration by weight as aqueous solution, and containing similar small amounts of unquaternized amine and its hydrochloride.

EXAMPLE 2 The same procedures were carried out as in Example 1, but substituting ethylbenzyl bromide for the corresponding chloride.

EXAMPLE 3 In the same manner as in Example 1, the respective alkyl dimethyl amines of that example were quaternized by reaction with unsubstituted benzyl chloride. The products were diluted to 50% by weight as aqueous solutions, and contained free amine and amine hydrochloride in the same small amount as before.

EXAMPLE 4 The same procedures were carried out as in Example 3, but using benzyl bromide instead of the corresponding chloride.

The quaternaries obtained in the above manner were tested for hard water tolerance by the standard method as given in the Association of Ofiicial Agricultural Chemists Method: Germicidal and Detergent Sanitizers, Oflicial and Final Action (10th edition, 1965), No. 5.023, page 87, against E. coli A.T.C.C. No. 11,229. This method determines the number of surviving organisms and is, therefore, a quite accurate test of microbiocidal activity.

The following tables show the results, in terms of parts per million water hardness tolerated by 200 parts per million of the quaternary on a active basis:

TABLE 1 Products of Example 1, individually Alkyl: Hard water tolerance (p.p.m.) C 400 C 700 C 400 C 300 Blends of the C 2, C and C alkyl derivatives were tested and the expected arithmetical averages, based on Percent by weight, alkyl Hard water tolerance, p.p.m.

Cu Calculated Determined EXAMPLE 5 TABLE 3.PRODUCTS OF EXAMPLE 1, BLENDED Cn/CnO/ia Percent by weight, alkyl Hard water C17 C14 C10 tolerance, p.p.m.

TABLE 4.-PRODUCTS OF EXAMPLE 3, BLENDED Hard water tolerance Percent by weight, alkyl (p.p.m.)

C11 014 Cu 01 Calculated Determined a series of waters with hardness in increments of 50. This is the general test procedure.

Although, as indicated above, the unexpected jump in activity when using the specific proportions of C and C alkyls is confined only to the ethyl benzyl quaternaries, these products may be effectively blended with the C quaternaries having an unsubstituted benzyl group since these latter compounds have a high hard water tolerance of 700 and are less expensive than the corresponding ethyl benzyl compounds. In other words, although the C unsubstituted benzyl compound does not add to the synergism of the blend, it permits it to retain its hard water tolerance above 750, which is the minimum satisfactory value, at high proportions, even up to equal parts by weight. This is illustrated by Example 6,- which follows:

EXAMPLE 6 The ethyl benzyl quaternary mixture, the tenth item in Table 2, containing 65% of the dodecyl and 35% of the tetradecyl analogs, was blended with the tetradecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride of Example 3, in the proportion of 1:1 by weight.

The hard water tolerance was computed arithmetically to be 900, and it was found experimentally to be 900.

The corresponding quaternary ammonium bromides, in each case, gave similar results, when tested for hard water tolerance on an equivalent weight basis; that is, allowing for the difference in equivalent Weight of the respective chlorides and bromides.

The invention claimed is:

1. A microbiocidal composition consisting essentially of a blend of dodecyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halide and tetradecyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halide, the proportion of the dodecyl compound to the tetradecyl compound being between about 90/ 10 and 10/ 90dparts by weight, each halide being chloride or bromi e.

2. An aqueous microbiocidal solution wherein the Water is hard water and wherein there is present a microbiocidally efiective amount of a composition consisting essentially of a blend of dodecyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halide and tetradecyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium halide, the proportion of the dodecyl compound to the tetradecyl compound being between about 90/10 and 10/90 parts by Weight, each halide being chloride or bromide.

3. The composition of claim 1 also comprising from 0 to equal parts by weight of tetradecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium halide, said halide being chloride or bromide.

4. The solution of claim 2 wherein said composition also comprises from 0 to equal parts by weight of tetradecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium halide, said halide being chloride or bromide.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,692,231 10/1954 Stayner et al. 210-23 2,700,683 1/1955 Tesoro et al. 424-329 3,140,976 7/1964 Berenschot et al. 424329 3,247,058 4/1966 Hyman 424-329 3,285,959 11/1966 McFarlane 260567.6 3,349,033 10/1967 Zuccarelli 252--8.75

ALBERT T. MEYERS, Primary Examiner E. W DDE is a t x m er UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No- 3 525,793 Dated NOvembQ; 6. 1970 Inventor(s) Alfonso N. Petrocci et a1 It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

line 42, Table 3, 4th item, 3rd column of table Col. 3, under the heading c "0.1" is changed to read ----9.1---. 16

8'5!! MID SHLED 4 FEB-2 31971 (SEAL) Attesl:

Edward M. Flctcher. b: W R. Sum, m Atwsfing Officer Gamissionar of Patents FORM P0405) "$59) USCOMM-DC cove-Poo U 5 GOVIINHINY PIINT'NG OFFCI 0-3.!3. 

